A No-Girly-Girl Girly's Time
by SilverHuntresses
Summary: My present for AMillionPages birthday


Clarisse LaRue hated to sit in front of the bureau and play ' _girl time_ '.

She would rather be outside, getting her clothes dirty and having adventures and earning bruises to tell tales than sitting in front of a mirror, combing her hair, or even putting make-up on. She never was a girly girl and she was fine with it. However, her mother was not.

"I don't care who your father is, at least try to look presentable!" Her mother would scold her daily. The combination of not knowing who her father was plus comments like that said by her mother, made Clarisse even more stubborn and decided into not being a girly-girl. She would hate the moments when visitors would come to the house and she had to be dressed up as a small doll, with the pink frilly dress or her hair perfectly placed.

When she was ten and a satyr named Hedge Gleeson came looking for her, Clarisse saw her chance to go on the oh-so-wanted adventures that she wanted to have. Ditching the dresses and polished shoes with camo pants and combat boots, she was finally feeling free of all that.

When she arrived to Camp Half-Blood, she saw the opportunity of being who she really was meant to be. Lava wall rock climbing, racing, combat, weapons... Clarisse was enchanted and, to her non-girly looks, she added the bandana, her only accessory, over her forehead and hair, letting herself being as tough as she could.

Of course, there was the tiny detail that she was ten at the time. She could only look cute-when-wanting-to-be-rude.

"Hi!" Clarisse was greeted by a girl wearing the usual orange tank top with shorts and trainers. Her silky black hair was waving with the wind and her face looked like she wasn't wearing make up on yet she looked flawless and gorgeous.

She was instantly jealous of her.

"Hi..." she replied, not as cheerful as her newcomer partner. The girl would look at her and smile, but not mean more like ' _I-smile-all-the-time_ ' kind of smile.

"I'm Silena and I like your bandana..." she introduced herself, making Clarisse proud and conscious about what she had told her. _She likes my bandana..._

"Uh, thanks..." she thanked her, a little awkwardly.

"You're not used to get compliments, are you?" _Great, she's a noisy one..._

"What if I'm not?" she snapped back, part of her instantly regretting it. She didn't have female friends, thanks to her likeness to dirty and dangerous stuff. The other part of her didn't care much, but the part regretting it was winning over. However, and to Clarisse's surprise, the girl, Silena, kept on smiling and staying there, in front of her.

"My Daddy says everyone should say something nice to each other all the time..." Silena explained "And I really think your bandana is pretty, not lots of girls can look tough and nice like you do it!"

Wether Silena was faking it or not, it was a moment when Clarisse decided to always wear her bandana, to make it her trademark. However, her conscience forced her to do something in return.

"Uh, thanks I guess... You, um... you have pretty hair too..." she complemented back, a bit clumsy. Silena didn't seem to mind and stood there, while Clarisse was back on her training. When the daughter of Ares finished her lesson, the daughter of Aphrodite was there, holding her towel.

"Can we be secret friends?" The question threw Clarisse off balance, scolding herself for believing that she could have a female friends "I'd really like someone to talk to, but my siblings say that we only have to interact with other campers when we want something... And I want you to be my friend!"

The request was simple yet so comanding, that Clarisse didn't have a choice in the matter. She agreed to Silena, who hugged her with a smile and skipped away from there, not even caring that Clarisse was all sweaty and dirty.

* * *

Time would pass and Silena and Clarisse became the best of secret friends.

Silena didn't like it and made Clarisse know every time she could, but it wasn't until both girls weren't head councilors of their own cabins that they started to hang out, or at least show acknowledgement in public. However, the true meaningful meetings still happened in the dark of their friendship, as none of them felt ready to expose it out.

"Hey, Clarisse..." Silena greeted her, sitting next to her and watching the horizon, the sun setting by the lake "How was your week...?" Clarisse simply sighed and she would know something was wrong "Is it Chris-"

"Don't speak his name!" Clarisse interrupted her friend, looking red of mortification. Silena smirked, but stopped talking, keeping the smile on her face "I shouldn't have told you that..."

"Helloooooo? Daughter of the goddess of _love_ , here?! I would had noticed, eventually..." she pointed out, not wanting to add that she _knew_ from the second Chris Rodriguez laid eyes on Clarisse. Silena knew her friend very much and also knew she would never accept something unless she admit it to herself first "What happened now?"

"He- he's gone..." Silena stayed in silence, part of her mind scolding her for the choices she had made. But Clarisse cared for nothing of that. She had been trying, on her own way, to attract Chris' attention and had failed miserably. He would tease and borderline humiliate her a few times, if it wasn't for the intervention of passing-by demigods that would make him keep his tongue and actions on check.

"He'll be back, Clarisse, and if he doesn't see what I see in you, then, I say he's not worth it!" Silena tried to take her friend off her funk, earning a small smile from her "Listen to me, what you have to do now is distraction and I'm going to help you... Want to train? Or even race into the woods...? Oh, I know! We have think ways to maim the Hunters next time they're visiting!" Clarisse chuckled at the bloodthirsty side of the sweet and loving Silena, who would argue and become vicious whenever the Hunters were around.

"You really want the goddess of the moon against you if you succeed in your quest?" Silena flipped her long hair and gave her a smug look.

"Mom and Artemis had been in quarrel since they were born... It's in my blood to hate that part of her!" Clarisse chuckled and nodded at her explanation "Seriously though... what you want to do...?"

Clarisse's choice took Silena by shock and surprise, but agreed in doing it, as she was her best friend and wasn't going to say no. She went to get all the needed materials and came back, facing a nervous Clarisse. She was about to ask her if she wanted to back out, and no one would think worst of her, but Clarisse nodded and sat in front of a small mirror, letting Silena work on her hair from behind.

"How do you let a boy know that you like him...?" The question wasn't louder than a whisper, but Silena heard it and smiled softly, pretending to teach her friend all what she knew about relationships while having a girly-girls' day.

* * *

It was Valentine's Day.

It was Clarisse's first Valentine's Day _without_ Silena.

Silena had professed to Clarisse her love for Valentine's Day, saying it was the best day to show a love one that you care for it. Though Silena had always loved men, she would also give away roses to every girl in camp. It was her favorite tradition, to make everyone feel love, even the tough-looking Clarisse, who couldn't find the strength to get up from bed.

"She's there, surprisingly in bed..." she heard one of her sisters said to someone, though she didn't know to whom. Clarisse suspected it was Chiron, but her surprise was big when she saw Chris Rodriguez leaning on the door's frame.

"What?" she croaked from under the bedsheets, not wanting to give away that she had been silently crying.

"I'm the one sleeping till noon, not you!" Chris joked, crossing his arms on his chest "Besides, you're gonna make me lose a bet that you would appear at the arena and flip my ass for my Valentine's Day present..." When he unintentionally said those words, Clarisse groaned and turned around, not caring what Chris would say "Clarisse, c'mon..."

"It's Silena's favorite day..." she whispered, hoping that Chris wouldn't hear. But that wasn't her luck. Unknown to Clarisse, Chris dropped his smile and looked guilty and sad.

"I had forgot about it..." he admitted, closing his eyes "Forget about me, I'll make sure no one bothers you..." he promised and took the risk of placing a small peck on her forehead "Silena would have said ' _I love you_ ', so I'll say it for her..." Clarisse nodded, not saying anything. It was implicit, but she allows herself a girly-girl vulnerability moment.

"I love you too, Chris... But I just miss her..." she confessed, earning a short hug from him.

"Will you kick my ass tomorrow...?" That made her chuckle.

"You can bet I will..."

* * *

 _This is for my one of my best friends,_ ** _AMillionPages_** _, who is away for uni, celebrating her birthday alone for the first time. It started as a Clarisse-centric, but shifted into this beautiful chapter that I'm really proud of... Happy Birthday, Sweetie! You're probably homesick and all that, but I'm sending you lots and lots of birthday wishes from all across the Atlantic!_

 _PS. I wish I could send you a physical present, but it's impossible to know with my mail service IF it will arrive in one piece. But don't worry, I know we'll see each other soon! Have so much fun today!_


End file.
